5IO 



NATURE 



\_Marc/t 27, 1884 



also very good. Proccllaria capensis — the Cape Pigeon 

 — -was a summer visitor only, but was found in great 

 numbers, hatching in little holes under the turf. This 

 bird was so persecuted by a kind of gull that it only left 

 its nest after dark. Another specimen of Pro:ellaria also 

 visited the island in the summer. It was named " Equ'- 

 noxalis." There was only one kind of duck, and tliis 

 became very scarce through shooting. The number of 

 cormorants wis very small, while the albitross (Uio- 

 medea) remained during the su nmer only, when it made 

 its nest hanging from the rocks. They had magnificent 

 brown feathers. Of the white albitross only two specimans 

 were seen, but the white Dominican gull was comno.i. 

 Some few of the Chioiiis alba — the Antarctic Pigeon — 

 which were eaten, remained during the whole year, as 

 well as a singing-bird of the size of a lark. 



The insects found were few, viz, only a species of 

 land-beetle without wings, about one centimetre long, 

 resembling the common German Lauf-kafer, and a water- 

 beetle of the same size. A kind of red spider was caught 

 under big stones. Of lower maritime invertebrates a 

 good collection was made, which has, however, not yet 

 been classified. The greatest part of this was, however, 

 obtained when the tide was out and no boat was neces- 

 sary, and the dredging was unsatisfanory. 



In the sum iier two spe;ies of fish were caught in calm 

 weather, varying from 5 to 20 cm. in length. But none 

 were caught during the winter. The Expedition collected 

 only about forty species of land and water plants, among 

 the for.ner of which were several varieties of the Tussack 

 grass, two kinds of moss, two kinds of fern, and a little 

 shrub with leaves and red blossoms. The grass was 

 ravenously consumed by the cattle and the goats, bat the 

 sheep preferred this little shrub. Dr. Will is under the 

 impression that he has discovered some new varieties. 



Th5 transit of V'enus was seen in perfect weather, 

 although a severe storm raged at the time. The ingress 

 and egress were clearly observed, as well as the progress 

 over the sun's disk, but no photographs were taken, as the 

 Expedition was not furnished with suitable apparatus. 



The island possessed, in spite of its desolatenjss, a 

 beautiful Alpine nature, the tranquillity of which was only 

 broken by the constant thunder of avalanches. The 

 dwelling-house was comfort ible, although it would have 

 been more so if each mambar had had a separate rojm 

 instead of its being shared with another. The provisions 

 furnished to the Expedition left, however, much to be 

 desired. The tinned Australian meat was tasteless, and 

 the vegetables bad. The milk (in tins) only lasted six 

 months, while the salt meat and fish, although good, were 

 not suffi:ient. No fresh patatoes were furnished, the 

 claret was bad, and the beer was soDn consumed. The 

 cook did wonders, however, in thj way of culinary 

 achievements. There was no case of scurvy, neither 

 any serious case of illness. Some experiments were 

 made during the sum uer to cultivate beans, pe is, and 

 potatoes, but they failed, as the shoDts were destroyed by 

 cold as soon as above the ground. 



The Expedition left the island on September 5, 1883, 

 in the Germm co.-vette y1/i2m', but all the house i were 

 left intact. 



Four of the membsrs of the Expedition returned h^ iie, 

 but Dr. Vo^el spent a couple of months in travelling in the 

 Argentine Republic, while Messrs. Will and Clau;are nego- 

 tiating with the .Argent'ns Govern nent ab)ut taking tic 

 CO nmand of an e,>ipedition for exploring the course of the 

 River Pilco nayo, in which the celebrated explorer Cre- 

 veaux lost his life. Should their negotiations fail, thjse 

 gentlemen intend to undertake a journey to the B.'"azilian 

 province of Mitto Grosso, and thence make an ex- 

 plorition of Central Bolivia (Santi Cruz de la S-erra), 

 and e/entuiUy follow the wuerco.irses of Mimore and 

 Madeira iato the Amazon River, and then the latter to its 

 mouth. 



ALLEN THOMSON 

 "DORN in Edinburgh, April 2, 1809, Allen Thomson 

 -'-' had nearly completed his seventy-fifth year when 

 he died on the evening of Friday last, March 21. He 

 was the son of John Thomson, a distinguished physiciin, 

 who was the first occupant of the Chairs of Military 

 Surgery and of Pathology in the University of Edin- 

 burgh, and it is remirkable that both chairs were founded 

 on his own recommendation. Allen Thomson graduated 

 as M.D. at the University of Edinburgh in 1830, and in 

 I S3 1 he became a Fello v of the Royal College of Sur- 

 geons of Edinburgh. Soon after graduation he became 

 an e.xtra- mural Lecturer on Anatomy along with William 

 Sharpey. The atmosphere of the Edinburgh school at 

 this time was highly charged. A number of men, after- 

 wards famous, were either students or extra-mural teachers. 

 It is sufficient to mention the names of John Reid, John 

 Goodsir, Martin Barry, Edward Forbes, William B. 

 Carpenter, and John Hughes Bennett. All of these 

 became distinguished in biological science, and amongst 

 them in these diys there was the clash of intellect and 

 the rivalry of a noble ambition. None of these remain 

 except Dr. Carpenter, who must feel that the death of his 

 friend Allen Thomson is the severance of another link 

 connecting him with what was undoubtedly a brilliant 

 epoch in the history of the Edinburgh medical school. 



Dr. Tho.nson filled the Chiir of Anato.ny in Marischal 

 College, Aberdeen, from 1839 to 1841, when he was ap- 

 pointed to the Chair of Physiology in Edinburgh. He 

 held this office for six years, whei he was transplanted 

 to the Anatomical Chair in the University of Glasgow, 

 which he occupied till 1877. Since then he has resided 

 in London. Of his scientific honours it is unnecessary 

 to say more than that they ca ne without stint ; but pro- 

 bably the crowaing honour of this kind was when he 

 filled the Presidmtial Chair of the British Association at 

 the Plymouth meeting in 1877. 



Allen Thomson had a double career to a greater ex- 

 tent thin most scientific men. He was not merely, by 

 his own researches and by his well-known exhaustless 

 stores of knowledge, oniof the leadmg living authorities 

 in the department of embryology, but he was an eminent 

 public man, interested and infljeatial in many matters of 

 so;ial and scientific politics. In Glasgow for many years 

 he rendered the city and the University invaluable ser- 

 vice. By his energy and tict he contributed more than 

 probably any other man to the great wo.-k of building the 

 new University on Gilmore Hill. 



But with all his public work he was a busy man in his 

 own department. His early work brought him reputation 

 as ?.n embryologist, and he kept it up by miny i nportant 

 papers in the same department of science. In addition 

 he wrote on physiological optics, especially on the 

 mechanism of accom nodation, and on the sensibility of 

 the skin. His writings were not chiracterised so much 

 by brilliant originality as by facility of interpretation of 

 the writings of others, and by a running coiimentary of 

 h's ow.i, showing thit he had repeated the obssrvations 

 he was narrating with the effect of adding a few facts 

 here and cutting out what he believed to be erroneous 

 there. His method o!^ thought and literary style were 

 both severe. He was always sceptical until co.avinced, 

 and he strove to get from himself and from others 

 accuracy in detail. Hence he was inclined to be severe 

 on new discoveries or theories, and whilst reidy to listen 

 was rather apt to quench the enthusiasm of a tyro by a 

 douche of cold praise. But still his mind was open and 

 re;eptive, and in not a fe.v instances he changed his 

 opinions under pressure of argument, which canaot be 

 always asserted even of scientific men. Dr. Tho.nson 

 always had a greater iaterest in embryological science 

 than in any other department of biology, and none hailed 

 with more delight the rise of the modern IBritish school, nor 



